Tuesday, February 24, 2026

Working Together for Workers

Excerpted remarks by CLAC Executive Director Wayne Prins from his acceptance speech on being reelected as president of the World Organisation of Workers in October 2025, in Porto, Portugal.

Guide Magazine

Dear friends and colleagues, thank you so much. I am honoured and sincerely grateful for the trust you have placed in me once again to continue serving as president of the World Organisation of Workers.

It is a privilege to be part of this beautiful and vital organization—a friendship across borders, a global community held together by shared values, mutual respect, and a common vision for dignified work, meaningful dialogue, and better lives for workers everywhere. . . .

No matter how diverse our backgrounds, our languages, or our local economies may be, we are united in something far deeper—a calling to uphold and protect the innate dignity of every worker.

This calling has never been about power or prestige. It is about people and their opportunity to flourish through their work, to support their families, to shape their communities, and to pursue lives of meaning and purpose. It’s about the sacredness of work and the inherent value of each person. . . .

The theme this year, Working Together, could not be more timely. In a world that often seems to grow more divided by region, by class, by ideology, and even by despair, we proclaim something radically different: that unity is still possible. That solidarity still matters. That working together still works. . . .

Whether you are a nurse in the Netherlands or a mill worker in Mozambique, a teacher in Peru or a miner in the Philippines, the question is the same: Do I have a voice? Am I treated with dignity? Am I working in a way that enables me to thrive? These profound questions point us back to our conviction that every person has value beyond measure. . . .

The world around us is changing. Technology is reshaping the workplace. Economies rise and fall. Political systems shift. But the human need for meaningful, just, and dignified work remains unchanged. And that is why what we do together matters more than ever.

We’re not just here to represent workers—we’re here to inspire hope for a better future. We embrace that responsibility joyfully, because we know this work matters.

Let us continue walking together, across borders, across sectors, across our differences. Let us remain united in our desire to serve, not just our own members or our own nations, but humanity as a whole. And let our work together be a testament to the world that cooperation, guided by faith and values, can indeed build a better world.

Working Together for Workers

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